This story was first published at Colorado Newsline.
DENVER | The private company that runs Colorado’s only immigration detention center missed a compliance deadline set by the state’s health department to provide information about a recent tuberculosis case in the Aurora facility.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment issued a public health order on the issue Thursday and gave The GEO Group until Monday to respond. GEO did not.
“The GEO Group has not complied with the public health order or provided the required information. While statements that there are no active or suspected cases may be reassuring, they are not a substitute for compliance,” CDPHE spokesperson Hope Shuler wrote in an email to Newsline. “Its continued refusal to cooperate significantly limits the investigation, but we remain determined to obtain the information needed to protect public health. We are actively coordinating with Adams County, the Colorado Attorney General’s Office, and Denver Health TB Clinic on next steps, including legal remedies.”
State law has long required that public health officials investigate confirmed active tuberculosis cases. GEO, which operates the detention center for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, first shared the laboratory-confirmed case with state and county officials June 22. The company then “ceased all communication” with the Denver Health Tuberculosis Clinic, according to the state’s public health order.
GEO did not comply with an Adams County Health Department order from mid-July. Public health officials need specific information about the infected person, their contacts and their medical treatment to complete an investigation. In various statements, ICE has said the sick person was quarantined, treated and removed from the country. The agency claims there are no active cases in the Aurora facility. GEO has referred requests for comment to ICE.
“Public officials must be able to verify the facts, identify people who may have been exposed, and ensure they receive appropriate follow-up care. GEO has a responsibility not only to the people in its facility, but also to its employees and surrounding community,” Shuler wrote.